Trying to get a better grasp of Windows 8 . . . and having read that it is built off of W7 . . . is the primary difference between W7 and W8 the opening Metro page? In other words, once you click on the desktop icon on the Metro page and then have the desktop page open, do you have the same user experience that you have with Widnows 7 (minus the lower left Start button), or is this experience different too?

With no experience with W8, in theory an expanded Start page consisting of tiles does not sound especially bad, particularly if the overall user experience is quicker and dependable (I mean I like my smartphone) . . . however if the entire experience is a MS marketing manipulation (as some have expressed) at the expense of usability, then that would certainly be a deal breaker.